Projecting and catching device with resilient net



2 Sheets-Sheet 1 D. R. PADOVANI PROJECTING AND CATCHING DEVICE WITHRESILIENT NET Sept. 19, 1967 Original Filed Jan. 29, 1963 R m m v DN M1R is E m we W F w m D l 7 X Sept. 19, 1967 D. R. PADOVANI l 3,342,491

PROJECTING AND CATCHING DEVICE WITH RESILIENT NET Original Filed Jan.29, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. II

ooM'lNlous R. PADOVANI IN V'ENTOR United States Patent Ofiice 3,342, 191 Patented Sept. 19, 1967 3,342,491 PROJECTING AND CATCHING DEVICE WITHRESILIENT NET Dominique Rene Padovani, 36 Rue de la Coste, Aurillac,France Original application Jan. 29, 1963, Ser. No. 254,654, now

Patent No. 3,209,443, dated Oct. 5, 1965. Divided and this applicationAug. 2, 1965, Ser. No. 476,232

1 Claim. (Cl. 273-96) This application is a divisional application of myapplication Serial Number 254,654, filed January 29, 1963, now PatentNo. 3,209,443.

This invention relates to a game device and, more particularly, to a netdevice for use with a ball.

The securing of a meshed net to a handle or stick has been accomplishedhitherto by inserting the handle through the meshes. The threads formingthe meshes surround the handle; this arrangement is found in hammocks,butterfiy nets, nets for various games, etc. In order that the meshes ofa net may thus surround the handle, they must be suitably finished,which implies the use of nets manufactured by hand, usually of thesocalled fishing net type. It is essential, in fact, that the ends ofthe net terminate in closed loops in order that they may engage thehandle. Said conventional fitting cannot be used with more economicalnets, manufactured mechanically, and cut to the desired lengths, sincetheir cut ends necessarily include open meshes, by reason of the cut endterminating across the knots tying the meshes together instead of alongthe actual meshes.

The old method of securing a net over a handle leads to a device ofdoubtful strength because of the wear of the net as it rubs against thehandle. There is also the drawback that the breadth of the handle islimited to the size of the meshes. On the other and, for the reasonsstated, articles made up of nets secured to sticks or handles inaccordance with the prior practice are expensive, since it is necessaryto use hand-made nets and to secure them by hand; in fact, theintroduction of the handle through the meshes cannot be executed byproduction methods. These and other difliculties experienced in theprior art have been obviated in a novel manner by the present invention.

Another object of this invention has for its object a novel apparatusfor securing nets, whatever may be the size of their meshes, to a solidsupport such as a handle; furthermore, the invention also coversapparatus for producing articles of manufacture obtained in accordancewith a novel method, chiefly fishing nets, hammocks, nets for games, netbags and the like, of which at least one end is secured to a handle,stick or the like resistant support.

With these and other objects in view, as will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art, the invention resides in the combination of partsset forth in the specification and covered by the claim appended hereto.

The character of the invention, however, may be best understood byreference to one of its structural forms, as illustrated by theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a so-called fishers net,

FIG. 2 illustrates a mechanically manufactured net,

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a portion of an article formed by asection of a net secured to a support in accordance with the principlesof the present invention,

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the support illustrated in FIG. 3,before it is secured to the net,

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the support illustrated in FIG. 3after the net has been secured to it,

FIGS. 6 to 9 are cross-sectional views through four modifications of theinvention,

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of another modification of the support,and

FIGS. 11 and 12 are views of a toy constructed in accordance with theinvention and adapted to give an impetus to a ball in a game.

In a general Way, the present invention consists in spreading a meshednet over a surface on which is laid a handle element so as to cover theelement with the portion of the net to be secured to it, after whichthere is laid over said net portion, a part, cooperating with theelement, which accurately matches the shape of the handle. The saidcooperating .part is then clamped over the element and secured to thelatter. An outstanding feature of the invention is the arrangement inparallelism on a carrier surface of a series of elements provided forthe manufacture of a plurality of the articles; the series is covered bymeans of a single common length of a mechanical net; a cooperating partis then laid, clamped and secured'on each element, after which the netis cut along suitable lines so as to separate the articles obtained fromeach other. The securing of the cooperating part to the correspondingstick may be brought about by screwing, riveting, gluing or any otherknown means, and possibly by several of such means.

In a highly practical embodiment of the invention, the securing of thecooperating parts over the corresponding elements is brought aboutmechanically (instead of being performed manually) by means of a machineacting simultaneously on one or more handles and cooperatingnet-clamping parts. For instance, it is possible simultaneously to riveta cooperating part on each of the two elements secured to the twoopposite ends of a net. The apparatus for the execution of the securingmethod according to the invention, includes an assembling table, thelength of which is proportional to the number of netincluding articlesto be produced simultaneously. The assembling table is provided withmeans for positioning the handle elements and retaining them. This meansconsists of recesses formed in the table, the shape and size of whichrecesses being such that the supports may be housed in the recesseswhile the parts of the supports on which the cooperating parts are to beapplied, remain flush with the table. Means is provided for a suitablespreading, as a uniform sheet, of the desired length of net over thesurface of the table; this means may be advantageously made up of aseries of small bosses, cones or studs, distributed longitudinallyand/or transversely on the table, and adapted to engage the meshes ofthe net.

According to my invention, it is possible to produce speedily, undergood economical conditions, articles such as fishing nets, hammocks,game nets and various other similar articles. In such articles, themeshed net may be made of any desired material, such as textile,plastic, elastic, or metallic. The elements and the cooperating partsmay be made of metal, wood, plastic material, or artificial board.

The supports and the parts cooperating therewith which orm the essentialcomponents of the articles according o the invention, are notnecessarily made of the same naterial; for reasons of thickness andmechanical resistlnce, and also for aesthetic reasons, it may be ofinter- :st to resort to a cooperating part made of a material lifferentfrom that of the element; for instance, metal ind wood or plastic andmetal may be used. The element ind its cooperating part may be givenvarious shapes, uch as a triangular shape, a trapezium, the arc of acircle )r any other flat geometrical figure. However, the sim- )lESlZshape, which is at the same time of practical inter- :st, is that wherethe surface of the stick or handle to vhich the net is to be secured, isrectilinear and is fiat- .ened. The contacting surfaces between thestick and the :ooperating part may be flat, but it is advantageous, how-:ver, to give these surfaces a curvilinear, sinuous or ;oothed shape,with a view to more securely anchoring :he net. In one embodiment of myinvention, the cooperating part is provided with recesses and/ orprojections :ngaging corresponding projections and/or recesses of ;hestick. Thus, for instance, the element may be provided with projectionssuch as bosses, fingers or studs, whereas openings are provided in thecooperating part for engagement by said projections; in such a case ahigh-strength engagement of the net may be obtained through the agencyof glue, spread over the surfaces to be connected before the fitting ofthe cooperating net-securing part over the element.

Referring now to the figures, FIG. 1 shows a section 1 of a net of theso-called fishers net type; the end meshes of said section, such as 3,are all finished and closed; in other words, none of the sides of thenet section terminates at knots 4 but only along complete meshes 3inside of which the support is caused to pass in accordance with theknown procedure, so as to secure the net to said support. Such nets mustbe manufactured by hand.

FIG. 2 shows a section of a net 2 of the machine-made type, i.e., a netproduced mechanically in pieces of a considerable length. The section 2has been obtained by cutting from a long piece, the cuts being executedalong lines XX and XX". Consequently, it is obvious that the cut ends ofthe net pass through or close to the knots 4a and the open meshes 5. Itis, therefore, impossible to introduce a stick or the like supportthrough the end meshes 5. In the production of articles in accordancewith the invention, the net 2 is perfectly suitable and it is notnecessary to use more expensive nets of the fisher type.

FIG. 3 shows the net 2 as secured to a handle or support element 6 bythe clamping of the end of the net between a bearing surface 8 of theelement and a cooperating part 7 In the perspective illustration, onlythe extreme left-hand edge of the bearing surface 8, forming part of thesurface of the support element 6 covered by the cooperating part 7, canbe seen. The cooperating part is secured to the element 6 and clampedover it by rivets 9 or the like.

The end edge of the net, provided with open meshes and cut along line XX(FIG. 2), is held between the bearing surface 8 of the support and thecooperating part 7. If required, the line XX along which the section iscut, may extend up to a groove 10 provided along the upper interengagingedges of the elements 6 and the part 7. The construction of the articleillustrated in FIG. 3 may be carried out by starting from a section outbeforehand' as illustrated in FIG. 2. However, a more practical methodconsists in inserting such a machine-made net over the support element6, as illustrated in FIG. 4 and then positioning the cooperatingnet-clamping part 7 (FIG. 5). This being done, a cutter blade is causedto pass through the groove 10 to cut the clamped section from theremainder of the net. It will be readily understood that this manner ofoperating permits the construction of a series of articlessimultaneously, provided the desired number of support elements 6 areavailable, said supports being positioned at suitable intervals andbeing all covered by the same continuous net. A special arrangement forsuch an operation will be described hereinafter.

In FIGS. 6 to 10, I have illustrated a number of possible constructionsof the support elements and the cooperating parts. FIG. 6 shows thecross-section of a support element 61 of which the bearing surface 81 isnot flat but is serrated; furthermore, the cooperating part 71 is cut toshow a cooperating serration which fits exactly in the recesses of theserration of the bearing surface 81. The net 2b is thus very tightlyanchored between the element 61 and the part 71. FIG. 7 shows a furtherembodiment containing a support element 62 and a cooperating part 72engaging each other along a bearing surface 82 provided withlongitudinal grooves 82a and clamping a net 2c. The support element 63illustrated in FIG. 8 is in the shape of a half oval with a serratedbearing surface 83, while the cooperating part 73 which has a similarand symmetrical shape which matches exactly the shape of the serratedbearing surface 83 and serves to clamp the net 2d. In the modificationillustrated in FIG. 9, the support element 64 is formed as a stickhaving a generally oval cross-section and provided with a longitudinalgroove 84 inside which is fitted a cooperating part such as a rod 74forming the cooperating part which clamps a net 2e.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a support element 106 of the same typeas that illustrated in FIGS. 3 to 5, but provided with a series of pegs11; said FIG. 10 shows, furthermore, a cooperating part 107 providedwith a series of bores 12 adapted to receive the pegs 11 exactly. Theedge of the net is placed on the bearing surface 108 of the supportelement, so that the meshes may extend round the bosses 11. Thecooperating part 107 is then fitted over the support 106 throughengagement of the pegs 11 inside the bores 12. The parts are thenclamped together and secured by means of rivets or the like, notillustrated. Consequently, the net is held not only through clamping butalso through engagement of the meshes round the corresponding pegs 11.It may be preferable in some cases to secure the different partstogether by means of glue spread over the bearing surface 108 andpreferably also over the edges of the bosses. An article of a remarkableresistance is thus obtained.

FIGS. 11 and 12 illustrate a novel game constituted by a section of themeshed net 2 secured at both ends to support elements 13 and 13aprovided with handles 14 and 14a. The net 2 is provided with two elasticthreads 15 and 15a which urge the elements 13 and 13a toward each other.In FIG. 11, the elastic strings 15 and 15a are stretched horizontally,Whereas in the case of FIG. 12, they are released. When the handles aredrawn outwardly so as to make the net pass from the conditionillustrated in FIG. 12 to that illustrated in FIG. 11, a ball or ashuttle-cock carried on the net is projected upwardly. Such anarrangement is already known, but the game has never been constructedhitherto on a commercial scale by reason of the above-mentioneddrawback, caused by the conventional manner of securing the net to itssupport elements. The present improved method permits the net to beeasily constructed for this game in large amounts, while its strengthallows it to serve well for sporting purposes. In the special form ofthe game illustrated in FIGS. 11 and 12, the net 2 is made of elasticthreads; in contrast, the strings 15 and 15a are made of only slightlyelastic material.

It is obvious that minor changes may be made in the form andconstruction of the invention without departing from the material spiritthereof. It is not, however, desired to confine the invention to theexact form herein shown and described, but it is desired to include allsuch as properly come within the scope claimed.

The invention having been thus described, what is claimed as new anddesired to secure by Letters Patent is:

A game implement, comprising 5 6 (a) a net comprising a plurality ofstrands having a References Cited given thickness and a givenelasticity, said net hav- UNITED STATES PATENTS ing two opposed sidesand two edges;

(b) two strings having a thickness greater than said g f giventhickness, and an elasticity less than said given 5 18O8035 6/1931 3:1:2 1 gl g c y d ends, sald strmgs extendlng along sald 2,201,802 5/1940Steiner (c) two flat elongated handle support elements provid- 24658083/1949 Klllam 273*96 ed with first uneven surfaces, said surfacescarrying FOREIGN PATENTS said opposed sides of said net and said ends ofsaid 10 547,719 5/1956 Belgium strings; 23,690 1907 Great Britain.

(d) net clamping parts provided w1th second uneven 27 679 1908 GreatBritain surfaces interlockable with said first uneven surfaces; andANTON O. OECHSLE, Primary Examiner.

(e) means rigidly securing said net clamping parts to 15 v said supportelements through said uneven surfaces DELBERT LOWE BARRY SHAY Exammem'and over said opposed sides and said ends. M. R. PAGE, Assistant E i

